Dear young writer,
Do you dream of one day writing your own stories and books? Of becoming an author? So did I. Back before the internet was widely available, I’d find mailing addresses for my favorite authors (I don’t quite remember how or where, ha!) and send them fan mail. Some authors wrote back. I still have those letters.
I also wrote “books” of my own and sold them to my parents. Here’s one I wrote when I was eight years old called “Surprises for Carey Pebble.”
It’s all about a girl who has such amazing friends that they pool their money together to buy her a horse for her birthday. A couple chapters later, Carey asks her mom why her belly looks so big. Her mom says she’s going to have a baby. In two days.
When Carey holds her newborn sister, she describes her as having “shiny brown hair, tiny freckels and a delicate little head.” She rides her new horse to tell her friends about the new baby and in the next chapter, her mom gives her yet another surprise — a new puppy!
Can you tell that eight-year-old me wanted a new horse, a baby sibling, and a puppy? Since I couldn’t have those things, I wrote about them.
What do you write about?
I hope you put your biggest dreams into words. I hope you show your family and your teachers what you’ve written. And I hope you know that if you want to become an author when you grow up, you absolutely can. It took me years of reading and learning about writing (and lots and lots of rejection) before my first book got accepted for publication, but it’s finally happening.
So keep dreaming, young writers, and maybe a few years down the road I’ll be buying your book at my favorite local bookstore!
Much love,
Laura